Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to information security and more particularly, but not by way of limitation, to systems and methods for anonymous access to shared resources.
History of Related Art
Many companies take advantage of virtualization solutions to consolidate several specialized physical servers and workstations into fewer servers running virtual machines. Each virtual machine can be configured with its own set of virtual hardware (e.g., processor, memory, ports, and the like) such that specialized services that each of the previous physical machines performed can be run in their native operating system. In particular, a virtualization layer, or hypervisor, allocates the computing resources of one or more host servers into one or more virtual machines and further provides for isolation between such virtual machines. In such a manner, the virtual machine is a representation of a physical machine by software.
Virtualization solutions can be adapted to provide virtual desktop computing (VDC). In VDC systems, each virtual machine can represent a virtual desktop, which can be accessed remotely by a client machine. By providing virtual desktops, VDC systems can allow users to access their applications and data from any remote computing device. VDC systems also centralize and streamline desktop administration for IT administrators.
Terminal Services is a MICROSOFT WINDOWS component that provides benefits similar to the benefits of VDC systems. A machine running Terminal Services is a Terminal Server, which can act like a mainframe multi-user operating system. As such, the Terminal Server can allow multiple concurrent users to start a remote interactive Windows session Like VDC systems, Terminal Servers centralize user application and data, allowing remote access and efficient IT administration.
Authentication to a virtual desktop or Terminal Server can be performed using single sign-on authentication. Single sign-on authentication is a technique that can reduce or eliminate credentials re-prompting each time a user accesses a computing resource, such as a virtual desktop, Terminal Server session, or application. Single sign-on authentication generally requires that a client initially provide a set of credentials for validation. To provide single-sign-on authentication without obtaining credentials from the client can be advantageous but also poses security risks. For example, typical solutions can result in user data of one anonymous user being inadvertently exposed to other anonymous users.
Moreover, as the value and use of information continues to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option available to users is information handling systems. An information handling system generally processes, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes thereby allowing users to take advantage of the value of the information. Because technology and information handling needs and requirements vary between different users or applications, information handling systems may also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information may be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in information handling systems allow for information handling systems to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, or global communications. In addition, information handling systems may include a variety of hardware and software components that may be configured to process, store, and communicate information and may include one or more computer systems, data storage systems, and networking systems.